Skip to Content
Closed today, next open Thursday. Closed today, next open Thursday.

Expanding Skyscraper: Presentation Drawing, Elevation Study

A drawing of a megatall skyscraper with a central skeleton forming a vertical axis and tiered expansions extending from it.

Image actions

  • A drawing of a megatall skyscraper with a central skeleton forming a vertical axis and tiered expansions extending from it.

Date:

1961

Artist:

Reginald Malcolmson
American, born Ireland, 1912-1992

About this artwork

Reginald Malcolmson came to Chicago in 1947 from Ireland to study with Mies van der Rohe at Illinois Institute of Technology. He subsequently worked in the Office of Mies van der Rohe from 1948 through 1955. He also was known throughout his career as a teacher and an architect of visionary and experimental projects.
His proposal for an expanding skyscraper is a theoretical project which would have allowed the creation of a larger and larger building formed by enclosing parts of the main structural skeleton. The main vertical axis is a megastructure containing the elevators and services for the whole tower. Enclosed volumes may be expanded and extended according to needs and demands. Parts of the whole may grow independently, but all parts are related to one another by the transportation and services at the core. The skyscraper could expand so much it becomes a vertical city.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Architecture and Design

Artist

Reginald Malcolmson (Architect)

Title

Expanding Skyscraper: Presentation Drawing, Elevation Study

Place

United States (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1961

Medium

Graphite and charcoal on vellum finish tracing paper

Dimensions

143.2 × 107.5 cm (56 7/16 × 42 3/8 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Reginald Malcolmson

Reference Number

1987.349

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

Share

Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.

Learn more

Image actions

Share